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Genetics of the ability of Phyllotreta nemorum larvae to survive in an atypical host plant, Barbarea vulgaris ssp. arcuata
Author(s) -
Nielsen Jens Kvist
Publication year - 1997
Publication title -
entomologia experimentalis et applicata
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.765
H-Index - 83
eISSN - 1570-7458
pISSN - 0013-8703
DOI - 10.1046/j.1570-7458.1997.00111.x
Subject(s) - biology , flea beetle , brassicaceae , botany , host (biology) , population , flea , zoology , genetics , demography , sociology
Abstract A polymorphism in host plant exploitation has been discovered in the flea beetle, Phyllotreta nemorum L. (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae: Alticinae) where one resistant population is able to use Barbarea vulgaris R.Br. ssp. arcuata (Opiz.) Simkovics (Brassicaceae) as a host plant while a susceptible population is not. Crosses ( F 1 , F 2 , and backcrosses) between the two flea beetle populations were made, and survival of the progeny on B. v. ssp. arcuata was measured. The ability of P. nemorum larvae to survive in this plant species depended on the presence of major, dominant genes (R‐genes). The two most abundant R‐genes in the resistant flea beetle population were X‐ and Y‐linked, respectively. The use of B. v. ssp. arcuata as a natural host plant by the resistant population of P. nemorum seems to be an extension of the host plant range of the species. The role of sex‐linked genes in the evolution of host range is discussed.